Explore the vast range of titles available.

The axion is a hypothetical low-mass boson predicted by the Peccei-Quinn mechanism solving the strong CP problem. It is naturally also a cold dark matter candidate if its mass is below ∼1 meV, thus simultaneously solving two major problems of nature. All existing experimental efforts to detect QCD axions focus on a range of axion masses below ∼25 μeV. The mass range above ∼40 μeV, predicted by modern models in which the Peccei-Quinn symmetry was restored after inflation, could not be explored so far. The MADMAX project is designed to be sensitive for axions with masses (40-400) μeV. The experimental design is based on the idea of enhanced axion-photon conversion in a system with several layers with alternating dielectric constants. The concept and the proposed design of the MADMAX experiment are discussed. Measurements taken with a prototype test setup are discussed. The prospects for reaching sensitivity enough to cover the parameter space predicted for QCD dark matter axions with mass in the range around 100 μeV is presented.

Experiments searching for rare processes like neutrinoless double beta decay heavily rely on the identification of background events to reduce their background level and increase their sensitivity. We present a novel machine learning based method to recognize one of the most abundant classes of background events in these experiments. By combining a neural network for feature extraction with a smaller classification network, our method can be trained with only a small number of labeled events. To validate our method, we use signals from a broad-energy germanium detector irradiated with a \\[^{228}\\]Th gamma source. We find that it matches the performance of state-of-the-art algorithms commonly used for this detector type. However, it requires less tuning and calibration and shows potential to identify certain types of background events missed by other methods.

A pulse-shape discrimination method based on artificial neural networks was applied to pulses simulated for different background, signal and signal-like interactions inside a germanium detector. The simulated pulses were used to investigate variations of efficiencies as a function of used training set. It is verified that neural networks are well-suited to identify background pulses in true-coaxial high-purity germanium detectors. The systematic uncertainty on the signal recognition efficiency derived using signal-like evaluation samples from calibration measurements is estimated to be 5 %. This uncertainty is due to differences between signal and calibration samples.

Poly(ethylene naphthalate), PEN, is an industrial polyester which has been shown to scintillate in the blue wavelength region. Combined with measurements of a high intrinsic radiopurity, this has sparked interest in the material for use in low-background experiments.

A new package to simulate the formation of electrical pulses in segmented true-coaxial high purity germanium detectors is presented. The computation of the electric field and weighting potentials inside the detector as well as of the trajectories of the charge carriers is described. In addition, the treatment of bandwidth limitations and noise are discussed. Comparison of simulated to measured pulses, obtained from an 18-fold segmented detector operated inside a cryogenic test facility, are presented.

A fast method to determine the crystallographic axes of segmented true-coaxial high-purity germanium detectors is presented. It is based on the analysis of segment-occupancy patterns obtained by irradiation with radioactive sources. The measured patterns are compared to predictions for different axes orientations. The predictions require a simulation of the trajectories of the charge carriers taking the transverse anisotropy of their drift into account.

Low background experiments place stringent constraints on amount of radioactive impurities in the materials used for their assembly. Often these are in conflict with the constraints placed on the materials by their roles in the experiment. This is especially true for certain electronic components. A high value, high voltage capacitor for use in low background experiments has been developed from specially selected radiopure materials. Electroformed copper foils are separated by polyethylene napthalate (PEN) foils and supported within a PTFE teflon spiral coil tube. The electrical performance as well as radiopurity are scrutinized here. With some minor modifications to tune the performance for the application, this capacitor can be well suited for a variety of applications in low background experiments. Here the use of the capacitor for high voltage (HV) decoupling in the operation of high purity germanium (HPGe) detectors is demonstrated.

Many extensions of the Standard Model of particle physics explain the dominance of matter over antimatter in our Universe by neutrinos being their own antiparticles. This would imply the existence of neutrinoless double-β decay, which is an extremely rare lepton-number-violating radioactive decay process whose detection requires the utmost background suppression. Among the programmes that aim to detect this decay, the GERDA Collaboration is searching for neutrinoless double-β decay of Ge by operating bare detectors, made of germanium with an enriched Ge fraction, in liquid argon. After having completed Phase I of data taking, we have recently launched Phase II. Here we report that in GERDA Phase II we have achieved a background level of approximately 10 counts keV kg yr . This implies that the experiment is background-free, even when increasing the exposure up to design level. This is achieved by use of an active veto system, superior germanium detector energy resolution and improved background recognition of our new detectors. No signal of neutrinoless double-β decay was found when Phase I and Phase II data were combined, and we deduce a lower-limit half-life of 5.3 × 10 years at the 90 per cent confidence level. Our half-life sensitivity of 4.0 × 10 years is competitive with the best experiments that use a substantially larger isotope mass. The potential of an essentially background-free search for neutrinoless double-β decay will facilitate a larger germanium experiment with sensitivity levels that will bring us closer to clarifying whether neutrinos are their own antiparticles.

The GeDetgroup at the Max Planck Institute for Physics in Munich, Germany, operates a number of test stands in order to conduct research on novel germanium detectors. The test stands are of a unique design and construction that provide the ability to probe the properties of new detector types. The GALATEA test stand was especially designed for surface scans, specifically a-induced surface events, a problem faced in low background experiments due to unavoidable surface contamination of detectors. A special 19-fold segmented coaxial prototype detector has already been investigated inside GALATEA with an a-source. A top surface scan provided insight into the physics underneath the passivation layer. Detector segmentation provides a direct path towards background identification and characterisation. With this in mind, a 4-fold segmentation scheme was implemented on a broad-energy point-contact detector and is being investigated inside the groups K1 test stand. A cryogenic test-stand where detectors can be submerged directly in liquid nitrogen or argon is also available. The goal is to establish segmentation as a viable option to reduce background in future large scale experiments.

Experiments built to search for neutrinoless double beta-decay are limited in their sensitivity not only by the exposure but also by the amount of background encountered. Radioactive isotopes in the surrounding of the detectors which emit gamma-radiation are expected to be a significant source of background in the GERmanium Detector Array, GERDA. Methods to select electron induced events and discriminate against photon induced events inside a germanium detector are presented in this paper. The methods are based on the analysis of the time structure of the detector response. Data were taken with a segmented GERDA prototype detector. It is shown that the analysis of the time response of the detector can be used to distinguish multiply scattered photons from electrons.